Bagel Action Figures, and other amazing things from Finagle a Bagel

I've been a fan of Finagle a Bagel since I took a small class on bagels at their now-defunct Coolidge Corner shop a year or so ago. Someone from their headquarters in Newton showed us how to make bagel dough, then they took us into the back of the shop to boil, top, and bake our own half dozen. I tried their chunky vegetable bagel that day and totally fell in love.

But I'm loving Finagle even more now. They've released a bunch of webisodes, available on their website and on YouTube, featuring five guys in the baking plant. They all made me laugh, but Action Figures and Schmears were by far the funniest. Watch the first two below, then watch the rest at the Finagle a Bagel website.

Cheap Eats: Kupel's Bakery

There are plenty of places around to grab a bagel sandwich, but you're often limited in choices or end up paying more than you'd like. At Kupel's (pronounced "couples") just outside Coolidge Corner, though, you have a whole slew of options and get a tasty sandwich for just a couple of bucks.

Kupel's bagels are baked fresh daily in a wide range of flavors. They're chewy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. This Bostonist favors the jalapeno bagel, with just enough spice to make it interesting, but there are so many choices, you could take home a dozen with all different flavors. For the full sandwich experience, choose from a variety of spreads (like honey walnut cream cheese or hummus), fish (like white fish salad or lox) or eggs, and a variety of veggies. You can choose from a number of sandwiches, named mostly for local sports heroes, or pick your own toppings to get exactly what you want.

If you're still hungry after your bagel, pick up a pastry for dessert. The cases are filled with choices, and each type of pastry typically comes in 3 or 4 different flavors. Kupel's hamentashen are so popular, they're made year-round, with fillings like poppy seed and apricot, and they come in two different sizes. This Bostonist loves the flat tires, huge disks of puff pastry with layers of filling (like lemon or chocolate) and sprinkled with coarse sugar, because it's almost impossible to eat one in just one sitting.

Kupel's is located at 421 Harvard Street in Brookline. They are open Sunday-Thursday, 6am-8pm, Friday 6am-7pm, and are closed Saturday. They are also Kosher/Pareve.

Originally published on Bostonist.